The supply of drinking water for many rural and urban areas remains a
perennial problem in East and West Godavari districts, and with summer
already in, people in rural and urban areas are concerned over the
supply in the coming months.
Villages like Gokavaram, Sitanagaram,
Sankhavaram, Peddapuram, Tuni, Samalkot etc are reeling under severe
drinking water crisis, with borewells being their main source of
drinking water.
However the ground water levels are fast depleting
in these regions and with frequent power cuts, the villagers are unable
to draw sufficient water to meet their needs.
The drinking water
supply in municipalities of Peddapuram, Tuni, Mandapeta,
Ramachandrapuram and Valasapakala, Timmapuram on the outskirts of
Kakinada is no better.
The surrounding villages of Rajahmundry
like Kolamur, Konthamur, Mirthipadu, Katheru etc are being supplied
water through tankers. The municipal corporation of Rajahmundry is
supplying 64.5 MLD of water to the people against the requirement of 75
MLD, which is 135 litres of water per day in the city.
The MCR had given Rs 250 crore to cater to the water needs of the city and 15 surrounding villages for the next 20 years.
Though there are sufficient funds, Rural Water Supply department is not able to supply drinking water to the rural areas.
The
authorities even failed to prepare an action plan. The bores were not
repaired and the department is now identifying the villages which have
no proper source.
Kovvur, on the banks of river Godavari, is not supplied with river water.
Similar
situation is prevailing in Eluru, Bhimavaram, Tadepalligudem and Tanuku
where there is an acute shortage of drinking water.
MCR superintendent engineer Mohinuddin said steps are being taken to supply drinking water to every nook and corner of the city.
Rajamundry Has
* 30,750 domestic taps
* 1,800 public taps
* 21 overhead tanks with a storage capacity of 23,000 kilo litres
But none of this are of use, as officials have failed to make arrangements for water supply.
